Machine for making chains.



No. 724,798. PATENIED APR. 7, 1903. L. BRUGKMANN.

MACHINE FOR MAKING CHAINS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 17, 1900.

No. 724,798. I

L. BRUCKMANN.

MACHINE FOR MAKING CHAINS.

PATENTBD APR. 7, 1903.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 17, 1900.

A PATENTED APR. 7, 1903. L. BRUGKMANN. MACHINE IOR MAKINGr CHAINS.

No. 724,798. l PATENTED APR. '7, 1903.

' L. BRUGKMANN.

MACHINE FOR MAKING CHAINS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 17. 1900.

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-N0. 724,798. PATBNTBD PR. 7, 1903.

L. BRUGKMANN.

MACHINE IOR MAKING CHAINS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.17`. 1900.

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UNITED STATES PATENT Clarion.

LUDWIG BRUCKMANN, OF PFORZIIEIM,'GERMANY.

MACHINE FOR MAKING CHAINS. I

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 724,798, dated April 7,1903.

l Application iled September 17, 1900. Serial No. 30,314. (No modelJ Toa/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, LUDWIG BRUCKMANN,

This invention relates to means for making I chains having solderedlinks, especially fine chains, snchas used for eyeglasses, necklaces,and the like purposes.

The object of the invention is to produce a machine that willautomatically produce such a chain from a metal wire, doing away withthe need of skilled labor-for tho purpose.

The 'apparatus comprises, in substance, means for winding a helix from aroll of wire, means for severing one winding of the helix to form anopen link, means for hooking this open link into a previouslyformedlink, means for closing the open link, means for bringing .the link incontact with a solderingfluX, means for depositing solder on the link,and means for applying heat to the link to fuse the solder, and thussolder the link.

Myinvention consists, further, in such construction and arrangement ofparts, either separately or in combination, as will be hereinafterdescribed, and pointed out .in the claims. l

In the accompanying drawings, representing a machine embodying myinventiom'Figure l is a side elevationof a machine embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a top plan view. Fig. 3 is a section on'the line AA of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section on the line B B of Fig. 2. Fig. 5 showsthe mechanism for forming the link, in side elevation and on a largerscale. Fig. 6 is a top plan View of the parts shown in Fig. 5. partsshown in Fig. 5. Fig. 8 is asection on the line C C of Fig. 2. Fig. 9 isa side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 8. Fig. 10 is a plan View ofthe part shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

In the drawings, a, designates the base of the machine, on which issecured at one end two posts b b. The upper part of these posts Fig. 7is an end elevation of thel carries the shaft c, at one end of which isse'- cured the driving-wheel 1, shown as a handwheel; but this may besupplanted by abelt ordother means for driving the shaft c by power.Another shaft c is also mounted on the posts b b, having a gear-wheeld', meshing with a gear-wheeld, secured on the shaft c. This shaft ccarries also a gear e, that serves to rotate a shaft f, carried by theuprights 2 and 3, by meshing with a gear e on this latter shaft.

At the other end of the machine from that containing the maindriving-wheel l is located a table p, supported by posts 4. (See Figs.8, 9, and 10.) On this table a shaft o is mounted inl boxes p'-, p',which is rotated by a gear-wheel n2, that is driven from a gear-wheel n,.mounted on the said shaft j' through an intermediate gear-wheel n',car- (See Fig. 7.) Ashaft e' is also carried on the tablep byjournalried by the support 3.

boxes w fr, being arranged parallel with the said shaft 0. This lattershaft drives the shaft z intermittently by means of a gearwheel 5,having teeth on half only of its periphery engaging a gear-wheel 6 ofhalf the periphery of the wheel 5. Hence when the wheels are in mesh thehalf-revolution of the wheel 5 will cause one revolution of the wheel 6,while during the other half-revolution of the wheel 5 the wheel 6, andconsequently the shaft a', will remain idle. In order to prevent anyfurther movement of the shaft z after the gears 5 vand 6 have passed outof mesh, a spring 8 is secured to the table p, that has a lug 9, whichengages a cavity in the wheel 6 and holds it stationary. When the wheel5 moves around and its toothed portion comes into mesh with the wheel 6,a beveled lug 121 on the wheel 5 strikes the spring 8 and forces its lug9 out of the cavity in the wheel 6 and releases this wheel. Near thefront edge of the table is secured a springbrake 7, bearing on a pin 7on the wheel 6, which serves to retard the motion of the shaft a whenVthe wheels are about to go out of engagement. The free extremity of theshaft e' has a rod 10 project-V ing from one end, upon which a Wire 2Ofrom the reel 18, mounted on a post 4, is wound in the form of a helix.The helix is guided on IOO the rod l0 by two arms l1 and l2, that have Yforked extremities which straddle the rod 10 and also serve to formseparated convolutions of the helix. Theguide 12 has the wire 2O passingbetween its forks as it comes in contact with the windingrod 10. Theseguide-rods 1l and 12 are secured toa box 13, arranged to reciprocate onthe shaft 2.

A shaft u is journaled in bearings tt tt on the table p, arranged atright angles to the shaft 0, by which it is driven through the medium ofthe bevelgear ton the shaft o, engaging an equal-size bevel-gear t' onthe shaft u. On the shaft u is arranged au eccentric n, having aneccentric-rod 16, whose free end `is connected with a box 15. This boxis supported to be reciprocated by the rod 16 on two rods 14 and 17,`secured to the box 15 and sliding in apertures in the standards a'. Therod 14 is elongated and has this end secured to the box 13, by whichmeans one revolution of the shaft u, driven by the shaft o, will causeone reciprocation of the arms 11 and 12. Now the shaft z, andconsequently the winding-rod 10, makes one revolution while the shaft 0is making one-half of a revolution. Hence the shaft u will rotate theeccentric so as to move the arms 1l and 12 but one-half of a fullreciprocation, whereas the shaft z is held stationary during the otherhalf-revolution of the shaft 0. Hence the rod 10 will be stationaryduring the other half-reciprocation of the arms 1l and 12. The eccentrice is so adjusted and positioned on the shaft u that when the rod 10 ismaking a revolution the guide-arms 11 and 12 will be making the fullmovement in the direction in which the helix is being wound, and themovement of the guide 12 will thus correspond to the formation of thehelix around the rod 10, as it wereit being, in fact, moved backwardlyon the rod for the distance of one winding of the helix; but the rod 10is held stationary during the other half-revolution of the shaft o, andhence there is no winding of the helix. While the eccentric u is causingthe guides 11 and 12 to move in the opposite direction along thewindingrod the helix will be advanced along the rod and in the oppositedirection to that in which it is wound thereon.

If desired, a tension device may be used to keep the wire 20 frombecoming kinked and snarled, such as a pulley 19, that is forced incontact with a guide-pulley 19' bya spiral spring,r that has its otherend secured to a bolt secured to a cleat on the table p. There is also aguide-pulley 19, over which the wire 20 passes from the tension deviceto the winding-rod.

In proximity to the free end ofthe helix are a pair-of grasping-arms 2424b or pincers, mounted on a pivot 24, secured on an upright 55, that ismounted on the base a. The arm base a.

241 toward the closed position of the arms. To limit this movement, adetent 40 is secured to the grasping-arm 241, which arm has a bent partcontaining a stop-screw 41, that impinges ou the side of the upright 55.(See Fig. 7.) This screw 41 serves to adjust the limit of the movementof said arm. To move the grasping-arm 24b against the force of thehelical spring 38, a pair of levers 42 46 are mounted on a common pivot44, that is supported in a bearing 45 on the base a. The arm 42 has aprojection 43, arranged to impinge on the inner side of the arm 24". Adisk w is mounted on one extremity of the shaft u and has a crank-pinw', that is arranged to impinge on the free extremity of the lever 46,having a beak 47, thus depressi ing this lever and causing the lever 42to move the grasping-arm 24b and open the members. Theothergrasping-arm,24,isoperated by the lever system 30 34. A short arm28 is connected with the extremity of the graspingarm by a screw 27,passing through a slot 29 in the arm 28 and secured in arm 24a. A le-Ver 30 connects by a hinge-joint at each extremity the arm 28 with abent level' 32, mounted on a post 36 on the base a. The arm 33 of thisbent lever is connected by hingejoints with the lever 30 by a shortintermediate lever 3l. The arm 34 of the bentlever 32 has a rollerpivotally mounted on its lower side that engages the walls ofadouble-stepped cam-groove located in the convex surface of a drum m,mounted on thes'haftf, (see Fig. 7,) which combination of parts serve togive an intermittent movement to the arm 24, that will be more fullyexplained hereinafter.

A vertical shaft has one end journaled in the base a, while the -upperextremity is supported in an aperture in a bent standard a', bolted tothe base a. (See Fig. 7.) On

the reduced upper part of the shaft 60 is secured ahub-disk 78, fromwhich radiate four sockets 79, being rigidly secured therein. (See Fig.5.) [n each of these sockets is secured, preferably adjustably, a bentgrasping-arm 80, having pivoted thereto by a box 81 anothergrasping-arm, 82, the free ends of which arms come together, so as tograsp a link. Each of the arms 82 is operated through a connecting-lever83 by a vertical reciprocating rod 84, which rods are mounted inapertures in the disks 78 and 87. A helical spring 86 is arranged oneach of the rods 84 between the disk 78 and a collar 85, which serve tokeep the grasping-arms normally closed. When it is desired to have apair of arms open and release a link, a lever 91, pivoted on a block 92,secured to the base ct, has one extremity arranged to impinge on thelower end of one ot' the rods 84, when the other end of the lever 91 isdepressed at certain predetermined intervals by crank-pins i' on a diskt', secured on the shaftf. The shaft 60 is caused to revolve by astep-bystep motion in four steps in order to bring each of thegrasping-arms 80 82 to a certain IOO IIO

position of pause in proximity to the axis of the winding-shaft 10. Toeiectthis movement, a disk 73 is mounted on the lower part of the shaft60, havingon its upper face four pins 74. n r

An eccentric 7c is mounted on the shaft f, having an eccentric rod orlever 69, to which latter is hinged a rod 70. On the rod is secured abeak 72, having a beveled free extremity that engages one of the pins 74when the eccentric-rod moves in the direction of the arrow, but whendthe eccentric moves in' the other direction the bevel will cause the rod70 to turn on its hinge connection with the rod 69 and pass by the pin74 withoutl moving the shaft 60. Y A spring71 tends to keep the rods 69and 70 in line with each other. riphery, in which projects a pin on eachof the beaks 67 and 72 to prevent displacement of the beaks. A similararrangement of parts is arranged to act on the pins 74 on the oppositeside of the disk 73, comprising an eccentric h, eccentric-rod 64, hingedrod 65,A spring 66, and beak 67.; but it will be observed that theeccentric h is smaller than eccentrici la Hence the beak 67 will notmovethe disk' 73 as far as' the beak 72.v The function yof these parts willappear hereinafter.

A helical spring 60 is inserted between the hub 78 andthe standard a toretard the motion of the shaft 6.0 after it has been rotated therequiredl distance by the eccentrics- There is also arranged a spring75, secured to a bracket 77 on the standard a.Y The free end of thisspring is pressed against pins 62, projecting upwardly from .a disk 61,that is mounted on the upper end of the shaft 60. There are four ofthese pins 62, so that the spring tends -to press against two of themand to retain the shaft in some one of these four positions in itsrevolution. The side of the spring contacting with these pins has anapex 76, as shown in Fig. 2. n

In the path of movement of the link held by the arms 80 82 `is a vessel98 for containing liquid iiux, supported from au upright post 95,carrying a box 96, to which is secured a bracket 97, passing aroundthevessel. This vessel has a wick-tube 99, containing a wick v100 and anadjusting-screw 101, for controlling theA feeding of the liquid. Thewick is so arranged that the link will brush against it in its movement,and thus receive a quan-` tity of the iiux. Furtherin the path ofmovement of the link supported by the arms80 82 is a vessel104, forcontaining powdered solder. This vessel is supported bya brace 106,secured to the box 96. At the bottom of this vessel is a tube 105,carrying a plunger 107.

This plunger is reciprocated through the meydium of a bent lever 108,pivoted on a box 7109, secured on the post 95, anda bent lever l111,pivoted on a bracket 112,'having one arm connected by a lever 110 to thelever 108,

While its other arm is arranged to be moved by a pin g on a disk'g,mounted on the shaft The disk 73 has a-groove in its .pe-

f. A spring 113 is provided torhold the lever 111 constantly inthe pathof` the pin g". Each time the plunger is reciprocated a small yquantityof solder is forced out of the tube 105. The end of the tube is arrangedto be immediately over the link and preferably at one of its intervalsof movement, so that the solder will fall upon it. The surplus soldernot attaching itself to the link that has been already moistened bytheliquid flux will be caught in a basin 119, carried by a support 120,secured to the post 95. Still further. in the path of movement of thelink held by the arms 80 82 is arranged a torch or gas-tip 114,

projecting from a box 115, carried by a set of pivoted levers 116, thatare secured by a clamp 117 to the standard ot. The box 115 has agas-pipe 122 leading from it, which is connected with a gas-supply by aiiexible tubing 118.

As thechain 90 is formed by each of the grasping-arms 82 it is carriedover guidewheels 93 and wound on reels 89, mounted on pins 88, thatradiate from the disk 87. When these reels are carried around by theirsupporting-shaft 60, they each have the outer rim to brush on a spring102, that is secured by a clamp 103 to t'he post 95, and thereby aregiven a partial rotation to wind up the chain 90 as formed. When thelastwinding of the helix is to be grasped by the pincers 24n 24h, theguide-arm 11 is made .to deflect the helix toward the pincers and forcethe Winding between the arms by vmeans of a lever 22, (see Fig. 7,)pivoted at 21 on the stand- IOO ard 25, connected by an eccentric-rod 23with which it is moved by a rod 49, secured to the The block 48, whosefree extremity is arranged in the path of a cam s, mounted on the shafto. This cam has a part of its contacting edge concentric with itsmovement, so that when the block and knives are forced over toward thehelix they will be held there for a short time. In this position theknife 51, that is pivoted on the; block 48, has-its rear extremityarranged in the path of movement of a wing r', secured on a disk r,Ythat is mounted on the shaft o, which wing impinging on the end of theknife-blade causes its cutting end to approach the iixed blade 50andsever the winding, thus forming an open link., After the IIO v wardand at the proper time it is closed, by

v being pressed against the nose 54 of a'block 55. Thisblock has apair,Y of rods 56 56 secured to it, which reciprocate in apertures inthe upright 25. (See Figs. 4 and 6.) A lever 58 is pivoted on a bracket59 on the base a and has one extremity depressed by a pin Z' on a diskZ, secured on the shaft f. The other end of the lever 58 impinges on theend on a rod 57, whose other extremity is secured to the block 55, thusraising the block every time the crank-pin strikes the lever.

The operation of the machine is as follows: A certain amount of helixhaving been Wound on the rod 10 the pincers are placed by thek levers 3034 and cam m in the position nearest the winding devices and the jawssomewhat opened. Then the rocking-lever 22 is moved by its eccentric toimpinge on the guide-rod 11 and cause it to force the last winding ofthe helix into the opened jaws, whereupon the arm 24 is at once moved bythe said lever to close upon the other arm and grasp the winding. Thenthe arm 22 retreats and the pincers advance a slight distance to drawthe last winding out somewhat. N ow the knives 51 are moved into contactwith 'this end winding by the eccentric-rod 49 and immediately the wingr' forces the knifeblade 51 toward the other blade and severs thewinding, thus forming a link with separated ends-that is, what is knownas an open link. This link is now advanced by the pincers being rockedthrough the levers 30 34 and hooked into a previously-formed link, beingheld by one pair of grasping-arms 80 82 and in a position in line withthe helix, which arms have just been brought to this position on therotation of the shaft 60 by the eccentric rod 69. As soon as the link ishooked on the lever 91 is rocked by the crank and through one of therods 84 opens the said grasping-arms 8O 82 and releases the link andchain 90, which will hang from the open link still held by the pincers.At this stage of the operation the extremity 76 of the spring 75 will soact on the pins 62 as to cause a backward rotation of the shaft 60 asthe eccentric-rod 69, with its beaks 72, retreats for a very shortdistance, so as to remove the arms 80 82 from the vicinity of the link.Thereupon the block is raised into line with the helix by the lever 58,&c., and the pincers are now advanced still farther by the levers 30 34,so that the ends of the link are pressed against the beak 54 and broughttogether-that is, the open link is thereby closed. Then the block 55 atonce lowers, and the pincers begin their return movement. They at firstbring the now-closed link to its former position, where it was hooked onthe previously-formed link, and thereupon the eccentric-rod 64 andconnected parts move the shaft forward to its former position and bringthe arms 82, that are again opened by another pin z" on 4 the disk t,rocking the lever 91, to grasp the just-closed link. The next movementof the apparatus brings the crank-pin w' to strike the bent lever 42 46and, rocking it, moves the grasping-arm 24", thus opening the pincers,leaving the just-closed link on the arms Vinto them and form anotherlink in the manner just described. During the revolution of the shaftsupporting the four arms 8O S2 in the four-stepped movement previouslydescribed each link is iirst brushed against the wick 100 andcoatedwithfluxand then brought to rest at the next pause in its rotationnnder the vessel containing the powdered solder, Where the plungerforces the solder from the tube onto the link, and the flux causes it toadhere, and, lastly, the link at its third pause is acted on by theflame to cause the solder to flow and unite the ends of the link. Thenext step in the rotation brings the justsoldered link to its formerposition, where it has another link added in the manner just described.It will thus be apparent that four separate chains are being formed fromthe wire, vone for each o f the arms 8O 82. There can be a greater orless number of these or only one pair and a single chain made. Thewinding-rod 10 being cylindrical, a circular link will be formed; butthis might be made elliptical or of other shape to produce a desiredshape of link. j

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is-

1. The combination with an actuating means, of means operated therebyfor forming a link from wire, means operated from said actuating meansforjoining the ends of said link by solder.

2. The combination with an actuating means, ofA means operated therebyfor forming a link from wire, means operated from said actuating meansfor joining the ends of said link by solder, and means for addinganother link to said soldered link.

3. The combination withan actuating means, of means operated thereby forforming a link from wire, means operated from said actuating means forjoining the ends of said link by solder, means for adding another linkto said soldered link and then soldering said latter link by said meansfor joining the ends of a link, said several means arranged tocontinuously form a link connected with a previously-soldered link, andthen solder the added link.

4. The combination with an actuating means, of means operated therebyfor forming a link from wire, means operated from said actuating meansfor joining the ends of said link by solder, means foradding anotherlink to said soldered link and then soldering said latter link by saidmeans for joining the ends of a link, said several means arranged tocontinuously and simultaneously form a link connected with apreviously-soldered link, and then solder the said link.

5. The combination with an actuating means, of means operated therebyfor forminga wire link, means operated by said actuating means for nextapplying flux to the joint of said link, means operated by said actuat-ICO IIO

Y, Io

ing means for next applying solder to said link, and means operated bysaid actuating means for next applying heat to said link toV means, ofmeans operated thereby for form- .ing a Wire helix, means for severing alink from said helix, means for bringing the ends of said link together,and means for joining the ends of said link by solder.

8. TheA combination with an actuating means, of means operated therebyfor forming a Wire helix, means for severing a link fro`m said helix,means for joining the ends of said link by solder, means-for forminganother link from said helix and means for hooking said latter link intothe soldered link.

9. The combination of a driving-shaft, a toothed wheel on saiddriving-shaft having teeth on part only of its periphery, aWindingshaft, a toothed Wheel=on said Winding-shaft driven by saidpartly-toothed Wheel, a pin secured to said toothed Wheel, aspringsecured to the frame of .the machine and arranged to bear on said pinand thereby retard the movement of the Winding-shaft at the latter partof its motion, a spring secured on the framev of the machine and havinga lng adapted to engage the toothed Wheel, and a pin on the partlytoothed wheel adapted to impinge against said spring and Withdraw itslug from engagement with the 'toothed Wheel.

l0. The combination of a Winding-shaft, a toothed wheel on theWinding-shaft, a drivingshaft,a toothed Wheel on the driving-shafthaving teeth on part only of its periphery for driving the winding-shaftintermittently, a pin secured to said Wheel' on the Windingshaft, and aspring secured to the frame of the machine and arranged to bear on saidpin and thereby retard the movement of said driven wheel at the latterpart of its motion.

ll. The combination of a winding-shaft,a toothed wheel on said shafthaving a cavity therein, a driving-shaft, a toothed wheel actuated fromthe driving-shaft having teeth on'part only of its periphery for drivingthe Winding-shaft intermittently, a spring-lever secured to the frame ofthe machine, aprojection on said lever arranged to engage said cavity inthetoothed Wheel on the drivingshaft and thereby hold said Wheelstationary when said partly-toothed Wheel is not actuating said otherWheel, apin secured to said' wheel on the Winding-shaft, and a springsecured to the frame of the machine and arranged to bear on said pin andthereby retard the movement of said driven Wheel When said lever isabout to engage said cavity.

12. The combination of `a shaft, means on `the shaft for Winding a wirehelix, a drivingshaft, means for causing said latter shaft to rotatesaid former shaft intermittently, and means for causing saiddriving-shaftto advance said helix on said Winding means when saidWinding-shaft is not rotating.

13..'lhe combination of a shaft, meanson the shaft for Winding a wirehelix, a toothed Wheel on said shaft, a driving-shaft, a toothed Wheelon said driving-shaft having teeth on part only of its periphery forrotating the winding-shaft intermittently, and means for causingsaiddriving-shaft toadvance said helix on said Winding means when the Wind-ring-shaft is not rotating.

14. The combination of a shaft, means on the shaft for Winding a Wirehelix, a toothed vWheel on said shaft, adriving-shaft, a toothed Wheelon the driving-shaft of twice the perimeter of said toothed Wheel on thewindingshaft and having teeth on half only of its perimeter for rotatingthe Winding-shaft once during one half of its own rotation and thenleaving the Winding-shaft stationary during the other half of itsrevolution, and means for causing said driving-shaft to advance said`helix on itswinding means duringthe said half-rotation that theWinding-shaft is stationary.

l5. The combination of a Winding-shaft, a rod projecting axially fromsaid shaft,a driving-shaft, means for causing said drivingshaft torotate said winding-shaft intermittently, an arm having a forked endarranged to straddle said rod and to guide the Wire Winding on the rod,and means connected with said driving-shaft for reciprocating saidforked arm along the said rod.

16. The combination of a Winding-shaft, a

lrod projecting axially from said shaft, a driving-shaft, means forcausing said drivingshaft to rotate said winding-shaft intermittently,an'arm having a forked end arranged to straddle said rod and to guidethe- Wire (ITO Winding on the rod, means connectedwith said drivingshaft for reciprocating said forked arm along said rod, said arm beingmoved in the direction to follow the Wire forming the helix While thewinding-shaft is'rotating, and being moved in the opposite direction toadvance the helix on its Windingrod during the period the winding-rod isnot rotating.

Y 17. The combination of a winding-shaft, a rod projecting axially fromsaid shaft, a driving-shaft, means for causing said drivingshaft torotate said Winding-shaft intermittently, anarm having a forked endarranged ,to straddle said rod and to guide the Wire winding on therodanother arm rigidly connected with said arm and having a forked endalso straddling said rod for advancing the forward portion of the helixalong its Winding-rod, and means connected with said driving-shaft forreciprocating said forked arms along said rod.

18. The combination of `a driving-shaft, a

latter shaft for Winding a wire helix, a box, a support on which saidbox can reciprocate, a pair of arms carried by said box and arranged tocontrol said helix, a second shaft driven by said driving-shaft, aneccentric mounted on said latter shaft, and means for causing saideccentric to reciprocate said box and arms.

19. The combination of a driving-shaft, a shaft driven by saiddriving-shaft, means on said latter shaft for winding a wire helix, abox arranged to reciprocate on said windingshaft, a pair of arms carriedby said box and arranged to control said helix, a second shaft driven bysaid driving-shaft, an eccentric mounted on said latter shaft, and meansfor causing said eccentric to reciprocate said box and arms.

20. The combination of a driving-shaft, a shaft driven from said shaft,means on said latter shaft for winding a wire helix, a box, a support ouwhich said box can reciprocate, a pair of arms carried by said box andarranged to control said helix, a second shaft driven by saiddriving-shaft, an eccentric mounted on said latter shaft, a second box,a support on which said latter box can reciprocate, a rod connectingsaid reciprocating boxes to cause them to move together, and

an eccentric-rod connecting said eccentricranged to reciprocate on thelatter shaft, a pair of arms carried by said box and arranged l tocontrol said helix, a shaft arranged transverse to said winding-shaftand driven by said driving-shaft, an eccentric on said latter shaft, asecond box arranged to be reciprocated in a direction parallel with saidreciprocating box, an eccentric-rod connecting said eccentric with saidsecond box to reciprocate said box, and a rod connecting said boxes.

22. The combination with means for forming a wire helix, of means forgrasping the helix at its free extremity, and means for deflecting thehelix to cause its free extremity to enter said grasping means.

23. The combination with means for fortning a wire helix, of means forgrasping the helix at its free extremity, and means for deilecting thehelix to canse its free extremity to enter said grasping means, saidmeans comprising a driving-shaft an eccentric on said shaft, an armcontacting with said helix, a pivoted lever arranged to impinge on saidarm, and an eccentric-rod connecting said lever with said eccentric.

24. The combination, of a pair of graspingarms for grasping the lastwinding of a wire helix and holding it to form a link therefrom, meansfor moving said arms simultaneously, and means for moving each armseparately.

25. The combination of a pair of graspingarms arranged to grasp the lastwinding of a wire helix and holding it to form a link therefrom, a pivotfor said grasping-arms, means for supporting the pivot stationary, andsuitable operating mechanism.

26. The combination, of a pair of graspingarms for grasping the lastwinding of a wire helix and holdingitt form a link therefrom, a pivot,means for supporting the pivot stationary, said grasping-arms beingarranged to oscillate on said pivot, means for moving said armstogether, and means for moving each arm separately.

27. The combination, of a pair of graspingarms for grasping the lastWinding of a wire helix and holding it to form a link therefrom, astationary pivot on which said arms are arranged to oscillate, meanstending to retain one of said arms in the closed position, means foroperating said latter arm against the force of said closing means, andmeans for operating the other said grasping-arm in both directions.

28. The combination with means for grasping the last winding of a wirehelixto form a link therefrom, of means arranged to cause said graspingmeans to carry the link forward in order to hook it on apreviously-formed link, means arranged to then hold the link stationary,means arranged to then advance the link farther forward in order toclose the link, means arranged to then return the link to anintermediate position to have it removed from the grasping-arm, andmeans arranged to finally return the grasping means to thefirst-mentioned position for grasping another winding to form anotherlink.

29. The combination of means for grasping an open link, means forsupporting a previonsly-formed link, means for advancing the graspingmeans in order to carry the said open link forward and hook it into saidpreviously-formed link, said latter means also arranged to then carrythe grasping means and link farther forward, a closing means arranged inthe path of the open link to beimpinged upon during the said furtheradvancement of the link in order to bring the extremities of the openlink into apposition, said grasping means arranged to be then returnedto an intermediate position in order to have the closed link grasped bysaid supporting means, said grasping means arranged to be then returnedto the first-mentioned position in order to grasp another winding of thehelix.

30. The combination of means for grasping the last winding ofa wirehelix,means for supporting a previously-formed link, means arranged toadvance said grasping means and thereby carry said open link forward andhookitinto said formed link, means arranged to next cause saidsupporting means to release said formed link, means arranged to nextcause said supporting means to retreat from said grasping means, meansarranged to next carry said grasping means and open link fartherforward, a closing means ar- IIS ranged in the path of the open link tobring together the ends of said open link, means ar ranged to nextreturn said supporting means to a former intermediate position, meansarranged to next return said grasping. means to a former position andthereby bring the nowclosed linkin proximity to said supporting means,means arranged to next cause lsaid supporting means to grasp said`vclosed link, means arranged to next cause said-grasping means torelease said closed link .and means arranged to next return saidgrasping means to said first-mentioned position in order to graspanother open link. y 3;

3l. The combination, of means ,ftirsevering the last winding of a wirehelix,.9inplrising a box, means-for supporting thelbox-onjgwhich it canbe reciprocated, a pair of knives mounted on said box, means forreciprocating said box in order to bring said knives inproximity to saidWinding, and meansgforfausing said knives to sever said wire.

32. The combination, of means for severing the last winding of a wirehelix, comprising a box, a pair of knives mounted on said box, a sgpporton which said box can be reciprocated in order to bring said knives inproximity to said winding, a spring arranged to move said box and theknives away from said Winding, a driving-shaft, a cam on said shaft, arod eonnectedto said box and having its free extremity arranged to beimpinged on by said cam -in order to move the box against the force ofsaid spring and bring said knives in proximity to said \vinding,andmeans for causing said knives to sever said winding.

33. The combination, of means for severing the last winding of a wirehelix, comprising a pair of knives, means for bringing said knives inproximity to said winding, and means for movingone of said knives towardthe other knife to sever said wire.

34. The combination, of means for severing the last winding of a Wirehelix, comprising a box, a knife rigidly supported on said box, a

knife pivotally mounted on said box, a support on which said box canbereciprocated, means for reciprocating said box to bring said knivesinto proximity with said winding, a driven shaft, a disk mounted on saidshaft, a lug on said disk arranged to impinge on the free extremity ofsaid knife when said knives are in proximity to said winding and thuscause said knives to sever said winding.

35. The combination with means for grasping an open link and carrying itforward, of a block arranged in the path of movement of the link forclosing the link when brought against it by said grasping means.

36. The combination with means for grasping an open link and carrying itforward, of a block'arranged in the path of movement of the link forclosing the link when brought against it by said grasping means, saidblock 'being normally retained out of said path of the link,and meansfor moving said block int-o said path.

37. The combination with means for grasping an open link and carrying itforward, of a block arranged in the path of movement of said link forclosing the link when brought against it by said grasping means, asupport on which said block is arranged to reciprocate, said block beingnormally retained out of said path of the link, a rod secured to saidblock, a driven shaft, a disk on said shaft, a crank-pin on said disk,and a lever having -one extremity engaging said block and its otherextremity acted on by said crank-pin in order to move said rod and bringsaid block into the path of the open link.

38.5 The combination of means for grasping the last Winding of a wirehelix and forming a link therefrom, said means comprising a fixed pivot,a pair of grasping-arms oscillatingly mounted on said pivot, meanstending to retain one of said arms in the closed position, a stop forlimiting the movement of said arm by said latter closing means, andmeans for moving the other said arm in both directions.

39. The combination of means for grasping theflast winding of awirehelix and forming a link therefrom, said means comprising a iixed pivot,a pair of grasping-arms oscillatingly mounted on said pivot, a helicalspring connecting one of said arms with a tixed part of the machine fordrawing said arm toward the closed position, and means for positivelymoving the other arm in both directions.

40. The combination of means for grasping the last winding. of a wirehelix and forming a link therefrom, said grasping means comprising afixed pivot, a pair of arms-oscillatingly mounted on said pivot, meansfor operating one of said arms intermittently, said latter meanscomprising a drum having a twostepped cam-slot, a pivoted lever, leversconnecting said arm with one end of said pivoted lever, and a projectionon the other end of said pivoted lever arranged to engage said cam-slotin order to cause said drum to operate said arm.

41. The combination with means for grasping the last winding of a wirehelix to form a link therefrom, said means comprising a fixed pivot, anda pair of grasping-arms oscillatingly mounted thereon, of means formoving one of said arms comprising a retractile spring connecting saidarm with the frame of the machine and tending to retain the arm in oneposition, a stop forlimiting the movement of the arm by said spring, abent lever, a driven shaft, a crank on said shaft, a pin on said 42. Thecombination with means for form,

ing a link, of a rotatable support, a plurality of means for graspingsaid link, said grasping means being mounted radially on said IOO IIO

support, and arranged to grasp the successive links to form a chain onsaid means, and means arranged in the path of movement of said graspingmeans for joining the ends of said link by solder.

43. The combination With means for forming a link, of a rotatablesupport, a plurality of means for grasping said link that are mountedradially on said support and arranged equidistant from each other andfrom the axis of the support, means for applying flux to said links heldby said grasping means, means for applying solder to said links, meansfor applying heat to said links to solder them, said threelast-mentioned means being disposed in the path of movement of saidplurality of grasping means and in the sequence above mentioned, andmeans for rotating said support by a step-by-step movement in order tobring said links to be acted on successively by said fluxing,solder-applying, and heating means.

44. The combination with means for holding a link to be soldered, of avessel for containing powdered solder, means for bringing said link inproximity with said vessel, and means for automatically depositingsolder from said vessel on said link when brought into said position.

45. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, of a vessel for containing a powdered solder, a tube projectingfrom said vessel, a plunger reciprocating in said tube, means forbringing said link from the link-forming means in proximity to the freeend of said tube, and means for reciprocating said plunger to cause theolder from said vessel to be deposited on said ink.

46. In achain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink to be soldered, of a vessel for containing powdered solder, a tubeprojecting from said vessel, a plunger reciprocating in said tube, meansfor bringing said link from the link forming means in proximity to thefree end of said tube, means for reciprocating said plunger to cause thesolder to be deposited on said link, said means comprising a bentpivoted lever, havingone arm connected with said plunger, a drivenshaft, a disk mounted on said shaft, a pin on said disk, a secondpivoted lever having one end engaging said pin, and a bar connecting theother end of said latter lever with one arm of said bent lever.

47. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of'a rotatable support, meansfor rotating said support, a pair of grasping-arms, one of said armsbeing rigidly mounted on said support, the other arm being pivoted onsaid arm and having its extremity movable to and from said arm, saidarms being adapted to grasp the link whereby when the support is rotatedthe link will be carried from the link-forming means to the solderingmeans, a rod reciprocating on said support, a lever connecting saidpivoted arm with said rod, a spring on said rod tending to cause it toretain said grasping-arms together, and means for moving said rodagainst the force of said spring in order to open said arms.

48. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meansfor rotating said support, a pair of grasping-arms, one of said armsbeing rigidly mounted on saidsupport, the other arm being pivoted onsaid arm and having its extremity movable to and from said arm, a rodreciprocating on said support, a lever connecting said pivoted arm withsaid rod, a spring on said rod tending to cause it to retain saidgrasping-arm in contact, and means on the machine separate from therotatable support for automatically moving said rod to operate saidgrasping-arm.

49. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meansfor rotating said support, a pair of grasping-arms, one of said armsbeing rigidly mounted 'on said support, the other arm being pivoted onsaid arm and havingits extremity movable to and from said arm, a rodreciprocating on said support, a lever connecting said pivoted arm withsaid rod, a

spring on said rod tending to cause it to retain said grasping-armsincontact, means for moving said rod against the force of said spring inorder to open said arms, and means on the machine separate from saidsupport for operating said rod, said means comprising a pivoted leverhaving one end arranged to impinge ou said rod, a driven shaft, a diskou said shaft, and crank-pins on said disk arranged to engage saidpivoted lever and cause the lever to move said rod against the force ofsaid spring in order to separate said grasping-arms.

50. In a chain-making machine, the combination with the means forforming the link, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatablesupport and means on said support for conveying the link from theforming means to the soldering means, a disk mounted on said support, aplurality of pins on the face of said disk, a lever arranged to engagesaid pins and move the disk, and means for reciprocating said lever inorder to impart to the support a step-by-step movement.

5l. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meanscarried by said support to convey the link from the forming means to thesoldering means, means for rotating the support by a step-by-stepmovement, said means comprising a disk mounted on said support, aplurality of pins on the face of said disk, a lever, a driven shaft, aneccentric on said shaft, an eccentric-rod connected to said eccentricand hinged to said lever, a spring IOO IIO

bearing on said latter hinged joint tending to keep said lever andeccentric-rod in line, and a lug on'said lever arranged to engage one ofsaid pins in order to rotate said support, said lug having a bevelededge so as to move said pin and disk in one direction only.

52. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meanscarried by said support to convey the link from the- -forming means tothe soldering means, means for rotating the support by a step-by-stepmovement, a disk arranged on said support, a number of pins projectingfrom the face of said disk, and a spring-lever arranged to bear on anadjacent pair of said pins in order to hold said support stationary atcertain parts of its revolution.

means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, means carried bysaidsupport to convey the link from the forming means to.

the soldering means, means for rotating the support by a step-by-stepmovement in onerv direction, and means for rotating said support in theopposite direction at the end 0E each of said steps of rotation a shortdistance, said latter means also arranged to retain said support in saidlatter positions.

54. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meanscarried by said support to convey the link from'the forming means to thesoldering means, means for rotating the support by a step-by-stepmovement in one direction, means for rotating said support in theopposite direction at the end of each of said steps of rotation a shortdistance, said latter means also arranged to retain'said support in saidlatter positions, said latter means comprising a disk mounted on saidsupport,

a number of pins projecting from the face of said disk, and aspring-lever arranged to have its side face at its free end bearing onsaid pins, said face having an apex one of whose sides engages one ofsaid pins and rotates the support in said opposite direction until theother side face of the apex engages an adjacent pin in order tohold saidsupport stationary.

5 5. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, meanscarried by said support to convey the link from the forming means to thesoldering means, means for rotating the support b v a step-by-stepmovement, means for rotating said support in the opposite direction tosaid rotation at the end of each of said steps of movement, andfmeansforagain rotating the support in said former direction to its said formerposition at the end of said steps of movement.

56. In a chain-making machine, the combination with meansvfor forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, m-eanscarried by said support to convey the link from the forming means to thesoldering means, means for rotating the support by a stepby-stepmovement inone direction, means for rotating the support in the oppositedirection at the end of each of said steps of movement, and means foragain rotating said sup port in said former direction to its saidformer'position at the end of' said step of movement, said latter meanscomprising adisk `mounted on said support, a plurality of pins on theface of said disk, a lever, a driven shaft, an eccentric on said shaft,Y

au'eccentric-rod connected to said eccentric and hinged to said lever, aspring bearing on said latter hinged joint and tending to keep 'saideccentric-rod and lever in line, and a lug on said lever arranged toengage one of said pins and rotate said support, said lug having abeveled edge arranged so as to move said pin and disk in one directiononly.

5,7. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forming alink, and means for soldering the same, of a rotatable support, ymeanscarried by said support to convey the link from the forming means to thesoldering means, a disk mounted on said support, a plurality of pins onthe face of said disk, a driven shaft, an eccentric on said shaft,

.an eccentric-rod connected to said eccentric,

a lever hinged to said eccentric-rod, a spring bearing on said latterhinged joint and tending to keep said lever andv eccentric-rd in line, alug on said lever arranged to engage said pins successively and rotatesaid support, said lug having a beveled edge arranged so as to move saidpin and disk in one direction only, means for rotating said supportbackwardly at the end of each .of the steps of movementimparted by saideccentric and connected parts, a second eccentric, means for drivingsaid latter eccentric, a second eccentric-rod connected to said lattereccentric, a lever hinged to said latter eccentric-rod, a spring bearingon said latter hinged joint and tending to keep said eccentric-rod andlever in line, a lug on said latter'lever arranged to engage said pinssuccessively but on the opposite side of said disk from that engagingsaid former lug, said latter lug having a beveled edge arranged so as tomove said pins in one direction only. 58. In a chain-making machine, thecombination with means for forming links in connected series; of meansfor holding a link to be soldered, a vessel for containing powderedsolder, means for bringing said link in proximity with said vessel, andmeans for automatically depositing solder from said vessel on said linkwhen brought into said position.

59. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forminglinks in connected series; of means for holding a link to be soldered, avessel for containing a powdered solder, a tube projecting from saidvessel, a

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plunger reciprocating in said tube, means for bringing said link inproximity to the free end of said tube, and means for reciprocating saidplunger to cause the solder from said vessel to be deposited on saidlink.

60. In a chain-making machine, the combination with means for forminglinks in connected series; of means for holding a link to be soldered, avessel for containing powdered solder, a tube projecting from saidvessel, a plunger reciprocating in said tube, means for bringing saidlink in proximity to the free end of said tube, means for reciprocatingsaid plunger to cause the solder to be deposited on said link, saidmeans comprising a bent piv- 15 oted lever having one arm connected withsaid plunger, a dri'ven shaft, a disk mounted on said shaft, a pin onsaid disk, a second pivoted lever having one end engaging said pin, anda bar connecting the other end of zo

